The present invention relates generally to the field of manual tools for snow removal and in particular to a new and useful snow shovel having an articulating shovel blade mounted to a carriage.
Snow shovels having a blade and an elongated handle are generally well known in the art of snow removal tools. Some snow shovels have sharply curved blades, while others are flattened, and still others have side panels.
Two types of shovel are particularly common, regardless of the specific blade or handle. One type is used to lift snow and throw it, while the other type of shovel is used primarily to push snow in front of it like a plow.
It is also generally well known that some types of snow can be particularly heavy, such as wet, slushy snow or icy snow. Attempting to shovel a walkway or driveway covered with wet snow can be difficult for many people because of the weight.
Many different solutions have been provided for making shoveling easier. Some of the solutions include adding a handle to a conventional single handle shovel, such as disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 6,343,822. U.S. Pat. No. 6,343,822 teaches a shovel with a second, adjustable handle which can be moved from side to side around the main handle shaft to provide leverage for lifting snow or other material with the shovel.
Other patents disclose handles and blades which pivot relative to each other. U.S. Pat. No. 6,290,273, for example, describes a shovel with a blade that pivots to a greater or lesser angle between the blade surface and the handle. That is, the shovel blade pivots up and down about a horizontal axis.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,984,393 teaches a shovel having a fixed second handle near the shovel blade, and a mechanism for allowing the shovel blade to pivot about the main handle. The shovel blade is locked from pivoting until a load of snow has been lifted and is ready to be dumped. Then, a trigger is used to allow the blade to pivot to one side or the other so that the snow is dumped without having to twist the shovel handles.
U.S. Pat. No. 813,983 discloses a shovel with the shovel blade pivotally attached to the handle so that the blade can tilt to the left or right. The blade is connected to the handle by two bolts or screws arranged vertically aligned. The upper bolt is mounted through an arcuate slot in the shovel blade, while the lower bolt is the pivot point. Thus, the edges of the blade can be tilted off horizontal, theoretically to cause snow to move to one side when the shovel is used as a plow. However, it appears that if the bottom edge is not flat, some snow would remain behind when using the shovel in this manner.
A scoop shovel having the scoop blade horizontally pivotable about a vertical shaft axis is taught by U.S. Pat. No. 2,221,219. The scoop is moved by a ratchet and pawl mechanism connected to a remote lever at the end of the handle shaft. The scoop is pivotable for use scooping out ashes from a furnace having a small door, whereby the shovel can be inserted through the furnace door, pivoted, ashes scooped up and the scoop pivoted back for removal from the furnace.
A snow plow type shovel having an expandable pushing blade is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 6,269,558. The blade has two adjustable wings connected to form a xe2x80x9cVxe2x80x9d with a flat bottom where the handle is attached. The wings can be pivoted to form a greater or smaller acute angle relative to the handle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,334,640 discloses a snow shovel having a rotating handle and a single wheel. The handle and wheel are connected to the center of the rear of the shovel blade, so that the shovel is symmetrical about a horizontal axis through the center. The handle can be rotated around the wheel so that the shovel can be flipped over to permit the other edge of the shovel blade to contact the ground. The blade does not pivot horizontally relative to the wheel or handle.
Each of the shovels having a pivoting blade still has the easiest direction of travel with the shovel being perpendicular to the surface of the shovel blade. Alternatively, these shovels result in the handle being positioned at an odd angle when the shovel blade is placed square on the ground, so that it will be difficult to move the shovel. That is, none of the prior shovels provides a means for angling the blade relative to the direction of movement of the shovel blade, so that it can truly act as a plow.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a shovel having a pivoting blade for moving snow from a sidewalk or driveway.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a shovel with an adjustably pivoted blade.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a wheeled shovel for more easily pushing snow off a driveway or sidewalk.
Accordingly, a shovel is provided having an articulated shovel blade pivotally attached to a wheeled carriage. The shovel blade can be locked into three or more positions at different angles relative to a support bar of the carriage. The shovel blade is pivotally mounted to the support bar with a bracket so that the blade is spaced from the support bar and wheels of the carriage. A locking pin passing through the bracket and support bar is used to hold the bracket in position relative to the support bar. A handle extends upwardly from the support bar so that a person using the shovel can push it easily in a direction perpendicular to the support bar, even while the shovel blade is angled relative to the support bar.